A sneak peak of the giant pandas making their debut at the Toronto Zoo

Giant pandas to make exclusive debut today at the Toronto Zoo

City councillor Giorgio Mammoliti feels closer to the Giant Pandas than most in Toronto. He has been lobbying to bring the bears to the zoo for over a decade. Mr. Mammoliti reflected on the milestone with the Post‘s Natalie Alcoba, as Da Mao, the male panda, munched on bamboo in the background.

Q So, huge day councillor…Mammoliti It’s a day we’ve all been expecting and wanting and not sure if it was ever going to happen. When people become skeptical over the years, you tend to wonder whether they are right and whether you are a little off the wall yourself. I’ve been told for 13 years this isn’t going to happen, we’re not voting for your motions, it’s going to be expensive, the zoo is never going to be able to do it. After you make the front page of a paper, suggesting that you’re on a junket [in China] and it’s not right for you to have gone — knowing full well you’re negotiating and doing all the right things — you tend to wonder if people are actually right about you. So, this for me is just a wonderful thing, knowing that the zoo is now going to be able to stand on its own and survive on its own. We’re going to get people through those gates, we’re going to be educating the kids about the pandas and the conservation and all of that that comes with it. But in many respects, I’m just happy that I wasn’t wrong, that my feelings were right, that this was achievable and I want to really thank the federal government for coming to the table.

Q What drew you to pandas in the first place?Mammoliti When you’re the head of the zoo, you talk to a lot of people who are in the business and all of them were saying, while you have the best zoo in North America, you need not only an attraction — and I’m not going to hide behind the point that we need people through the gates — but to bring the best doctors to the zoo. To have interns learning about breeding animals and doing it with the pandas is an experience that most other zoos don’t have. So, for me, it’s about moving to the next level as a zoo and turning the page. And the pandas bring us to the next level and turn the page. And with an attraction like this, we won’t need the city of Toronto’s financial support anymore.

Q Ultimately, this is about becoming self sufficient?Mammoliti This is about self sufficiency. This is about the zoo becoming a true partner with other private sector partners in making this thing work so the taxpayers don’t have to cough up those hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure for exhibits.

Q How did it feel to see Da Mao?Mammoliti To see a panda again is an emotional experience. To know that it is here in Toronto is even more emotional. But to see it as a creature, as something that lives on this earth, I’m just happy that our children in Toronto are going to experience this in just a few days. This proves that the zoo does its jobs. We’re not just an agency that asks for things, asks for money, asks for favours. We have proven ourselves with the pandas here and I’m very, very happy about that.

Giant pandas are solitary creatures. So, it follows, that Da Mao and Er Shun, the Toronto Zoo’s newest celebrities, appeared to be in their own little worlds on Thursday, before a herd of craning necks and flashing lights and enchanted children who got an early look at the endangered beasts.

They pulled out their famous material, chomping on bamboo shoots shipped in from Memphis. Da Mao, the male, lounged on the roof of what was formerly a Siberian Tiger’s den, while Er Shun, the female, hung out in an enclosure with walls painted to resemble her mountainous habitat in China.

“Today is a proud day for all Canadians,” John Tracogna, CEO of the Toronto Zoo, told a group of dignitaries, including Mayor Rob Ford, invited guests, and media who were granted a sneak peak before the new exhibit opens to the public on Saturday.

It was heralded as a “milestone” for the menagerie, which has weathered headlines about departing elephants to finally be able to welcome the pandas with fanfare and affection.

The event kicked off with a flautist leading in children from the Davisville Public School and Yip’s Children’s Choir who sang the national anthems of Canada and China.

The panda pair are on a 10-year “breeding loan” to Canada, the first five of which will be spent in Toronto and the remainder in Calgary.

They arrived on a special Fed Ex flight at Pearson international airport in March, where they were greeted by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who was credited on Thursday with sealing the deal with the government of China.

Several speakers spoke of the bears as symbols of growing friendship between the two nations. Chinese ambassador Zhang Junsai said the pandas had been treated so well in Toronto, he worried they would apply for Canadian citizenship, which drew laughs.

“I’m so glad this day is here,” said Maria Franke, mammal curator at the zoo, who has dedicated the better part of a year to preparing for the animals. “Pandas can be ever consuming.”

Emerging or projected, the animals already have personalities. Da Mao was described as a “rock star,” a “laid back animal,” a “show off” and quick to adapt to his new surroundings, perhaps because he was hand raised.

Er Shun, on the other hand, is a bit of a “princess,” more reserved and “all about secrecy.”

Their presence will promote the zoo’s conservation efforts, and educate the public about endangered species.

The animals are also here to procreate, although they don’t know it yet. Five-year-old Er Shun and Da Mao, 4, don’t actually spend any time together. In fact, they don’t get along. Luckily, that hasn’t stopped mating in the past and keepers are crossing their fingers that natural instinct will take over.

Unfortunately, they have a very small window to make it happen — just one 24 to 72 hour period a year. Researchers are tracking Er Shun’s hormone levels in urine to pinpoint the first opportunity, sometime between March or May of next year.

“There is a bit of pressure,” joked Gabriela Mastromonaco, head of reproductive programs at the zoo. “It’s going to make or break [my career].”

For researchers who usually study cows, pigs, cats and dogs, the pandas provide the chance of a lifetime to learn.

“They are just unique in all aspects,” said Ms. Mastromonaco. “Everything that is rare and unique I have to implement in them. They have the one time of year, they have this thing where their pregnancy can be between 90 days or five months.”

Even if they mate, the zoo will likely also artificially inseminate Er Shun to ensure success. If a baby panda arrives, it will belong to China. Based on its genetic profile, it could be kept in captivity or introduced into the wild.